Lacrosse: Blue-and-white into last eight of lacrosse worlds

Israel advances to quarterfinals of 2014 FIL World Lacrosse Championships with 15-1 victory over 6th-ranked Germany.

By JERUSALEM POST SPORTS STAFF
Israel midfielder Yochanan Katz in action at the FIL World Lacrosse Championships in Colorado. (photo credit: LARRY PALUMBO/COYOTE MAGIC ACTION SHOTS)
Israel midfielder Yochanan Katz in action at the FIL World Lacrosse Championships in Colorado.
(photo credit: LARRY PALUMBO/COYOTE MAGIC ACTION SHOTS)
Israel advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2014 FIL World Lacrosse Championships on Tuesday, extending its perfect run in the tournament with a dominant 15-1 victory over 6th-ranked Germany.
Matthew Cherry led Israel with four goals, while Ari Sussman and Noah Miller accounted for three goals each.
Israel opened a 4-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back, claiming an easier than expected win at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado.
The blue-and-white led 8-0 at the half and 10-0 after three quarters.
The national team will next play the side which ended the Blue Division in fourth place, likely Australia.
The quarterfinals will be played on Wednesday.
Israel, which finished top of the Orange Division with a 3-0 record, beat 9th-ranked Ireland 18-9 in Monday’s first-round playoff contest, with Lee Coppersmith scoring five goals.
The blue-and-white trailed for the first time in the tournament, as Tom Burke drew first blood for Ireland, which held Israel scoreless until nearly the 10-minute mark.
Eytan Saperstein put the Israelis on the board on a feed from Jacob Silberlicht to kick off a 5-0 run. Israel led 5-1 after one quarter, and 9-6 at the half, before taking command of the match.
Matthew Cherry (one goal, three assists), Cody Levine (two goals, one assist), Benjamin Smith (two goals), Noach Miller (two goals), Daniel Leventhal (two goals), Eytan Saperstein (one goal, one assist), Ari Sussman (one goal, one assist), Kyle Bergman (one goal, one assist), Jacob Silberlicht (two assists), Richard Cheifitz (one goal) and Yochanan Katz (one assist) joined Coppersmith on the scoresheet.
Hank Altschuler (60:00, 3 saves, 8 GA) and Reuven Dressler (20:00, 2 saves, 1 GA) both saw action in goal. Altschuler was credited the win.
Burke (two goals, three assists), Tom Riley (four goals), Brian Gillis (two goals), Kris Prior (one goal), Michael Shea (one assist) and Aaron Cahill (one assist) cracked the Irish scoresheet. Connor Sweeney (80:00, 12 saves, 18 GA) was dealt the loss in goal.
A record 38 nations are participating in this year’s world championship and will play 142 games over 10 days. The US beat Canada 12-10 in the most recent world championship final (2010) in Manchester, England.
This year’s field was broken into nine divisions, with the top six teams competing in the Blue Division.
The other eight divisions all have four teams and are not grouped by world ranking.
The Blue Division – consisting of the United States, Iroquois Nationals, Canada, Australia, England and Japan – had six days of pool play concluding yesterday, with the bottom two teams (Japan and England) being eliminated and the other four teams advancing to the quarterfinal round. The top two seeds received a bye into the semifinals.
The top team in each of the other eight divisions after pool play have the opportunity to progress to the quarterfinal round of the championship bracket.
Along with Israel and Ireland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Germany, Finland and Scotland all topped their respective divisions to advance, with New Zealand and Scotland winning and facing off in the other second-round duel late Tuesday night.
The final is scheduled for July 19.
For more information on the tournament, please visit www.worldlacrosse2014.com


Related Tags
german submarines israel